Picture Notes:  Picture 5 has Left-Right Acer platanoides, Acer rubrum, and Acer saccharum.
Picture 6 has Acer platanoides leaf on top of yellow Acer saccharum.
Picture 14 has Acer platanoides fruit on top, Acer campestre below, with Acer ginnala on the left and Acer saccharum on the right.
Picture 15 has Acer buergerianum fruit on the left, Acer ginnala in the middle, and Acer saccharum on the right.

More Information:   Acer saccharum (FEIS)                              

Distribution:  Quebec and Minnesota south to Florida and Texas. Cultivated since 1753.

Synonyms:  

Hardiness Zone:  USDA Zones 4-8       (view USDA zone map)

Size:   60-75 ft. tall (up to 100-120 ft. tall) with a spread of 30-60 ft.

Form:   Deciduous tree. Upright, with oval head, dense and rounded.

Bark:   Bark is medium gray with black, soot-like areas on the upper half of the branches; the trunk being divided into flat, platy scales.

Stem/Bud:   Buds are sharp-pointed, finely imbricate, usually in 3's at the terminal, the middle bud being twice as large as the axillaries.

Leaves:   Leaves are opposite, simple, 3-6 inches across, 3-5 lobed, pointed, slightly coarsely toothed, with narrow and deep sinuses.

Fall Color:   Fall color is a brilliant yellow to orange-red.

Flower:   Flowers are greenish yellow, borne in a pendulous corymb in early April.

Fruit:   Fruit is a samara, l - l l/2 inches long, with the wings slightly spreading, ripening in Sept.

Uses:   Street tree. Salt tolerant.

Problems:      Squirrels may chew the bark during winters when acorns are scarce.

Culture:   Grows best on north-facing slopes in cool, moist, clay loam soils. Short-lived in sandy soils. Propagate from seeds or by budding.

Links:   

Notes:    This species is the source of maple syrup, collected in early spring.

Notes 2:   Shade tree. Native to Michigan.

Notes 3:   

Cultivars:   

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